U.K. cuisine scene goes poshly palatable

Chefs even give old standbys a modern twist

The dining room at the Goring Hotel in London has interiors designed by the Queen's nephew David Linley.

Photograph by: Handout Photo
, Goring Hotel

A food revolutionhas been happening in the land of such low-rent favourites as bangers and mash, beans on toast, haggis and fish and chips with mushy peas.

"Ya, thanks for noticing," chef Paul Kitching tells our tour group as we finish our meal at his 21212 Restaurant in Edinburgh.

"We're trying to do things a little differently here," he adds in his rapid-fire English accent.

A little differently is quite the understatement.

After all, 21212 earned a Michelin Star in early 2010 just eight months after opening.

It also won best new restaurant in the U.K. in 2009 at the National Restaurant Awards and continues to generate rave reviews and even confound diners somewhat.

For instance, what is a guy with an English accent doing in Scotland serving up nouveau Frenchinspired cuisine?

Well, after helping Juniper Restaurant in Manchester earn a Michelin Star, he decided to strike out on his own and secured an incredible Georgian townhouse on the Royal Terrace in Edinburgh.

A $7.2 million renovation later produced 21212 with a 38-seat main dining room, several private dining rooms and even six hotel rooms up top.

While the food is certainly contemporary, the decor is in keeping with townhouse's roots and can best be described as a modern interpretation of Georgian with big comfy chairs in sumptuous fabrics and elaborate draperies covering the massive windows.

The night we dined, there seems to be a foam theme going on. Foam topped the smoked fish appetizer, the corn-fed chicken entree and the layered summer fruit trifle dessert.

By the way, 21212 is reference to the 65-pound prix-fixe menu offering two choices of appetizer, a soup, two entree options, a cheese plate and then a pick of two desserts.

Our tour group was visiting Britain to sightsee, after all, the history and architecture is stunning, the scenery pastoral and the hype notched up after the global spectacle of Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding.

But as we zigzagged our way through England and Scotland, our inner-foodies came out.

We ate some British classics (fish and chips at the Ship Inn Pub in Fife, Scotland, for instance), but increasingly sought out the new direction of U.K. cookery, which is basically anything goes international influence using some local ingredients.

"Like all great destinations, Britain has a world-class culinary scene," says Jeremie Gabourg of Transat Holidays, which packages flights and itineraries from more Canadian cities to more British cities than any other company.

"Combine that with the history, sightseeing, scenery and royalty and you have an incredible holiday."

The 69-room Goring Hotel in London's Belgravia neighbourhood has always been exclusive, but little known.

That was until Kate Middleton famously spent the night there before marrying Prince William.

With TV cameras from around the world trained on the property to capture her exit in wedding dress, the hotel has become a refined London hot spot.

"I can't talk about Kate's stay here," says hotel managing director David Morgan-Hewitt when our group drops in for dinner.

"But I can certainly tell you about the food and the restaurant and the hotel."

So we sit down to "proper British cuisine," which turns out to be a modern take on the usually staid food the Brits are known for.

As such we savour the cold asparagus in vinaigrette, the slow-roasted lamb breast in shallot sauce and the rhubarb and ginger trifle.

Much explanation goes into the trifle featuring Mrs. Oldroyd's rhubarb from Yorkshire, which has been forced.

Forced meaning it's grown in the dark to produce small, sweet shoots, rather than the usual thick, sour stalks.

Sounds dreadful for the rhubarb, but good for us picky eaters.

Before taking in the West End London musical Betty Blue Eyes, we have an early dinner at the nearby Indigo Restaurant at the upscale One Aldwych Hotel.

I eat what's referred to as "contemporary British" by ordering the coley fish with bubble and squeak.

Coley from the North Sea used to be a down-market fish, but has gained prestige for its firm white flesh and progressive chefs working their magic on it.

Perfectly poached, my coley accompanies bubble and squeak, another common Brit dish gone gourmet. It's basically mashed potato mixed with shredded cabbage, carrot and onions and rolled into a cake that bubbles and squeaks when it hits the hot frying pan

It's back in Edinburgh where we sit down at Bistro du Vin in the Hotel du Vin.

A warm room with vaulted ceiling its bistro name reflects is French influence, but with Scottish ingredients.

The fish is from the nearby North Sea, the lamb and pork "birth to butcher reared" at Peelham Farm and the cheese from the Mellis family.

It's at Bistro du Vin that sommelier Sebastiano Ingaliso starts us off with a glass of Pol Roger -the champagne served to the 1,200 luncheon guests after Wills and Kate's nuptials.

Even chain restaurant eating has been ramped up in Britain with Lock Fyne in Leeds (and all its other locations) serving fresh fish (try the monkfish and prawns in Thai curry) and Living Room in York featuring a great location inside the old Medieval city walls on the Ouse River.

If you want a touch of tradition, afternoon teas is still served virtually everywhere throughout Britain.

Our favourite was at The Orangery Restaurant at Kensington Palace in London.

The orange tea is served first and then the three-tiered silver tray is brought out with finger sandwiches (crusts cut off, of course), scone with clotted cream and jam and little pastries on top.

If You Go

- Transat Holidays packages flights, hotel and activities from Calgary to London and Manchester year round and Glasgow for the summer season.

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